Foreverland Farm is turning away requests to rescue farm animals after its funding fell about 50 percent from its usual level, leaving the Mt. Orab sanctuary unable to take in more animals even as calls keep coming. Brittney Kane said she has received about 50 inquiries this month from people looking for help placing animals in the community.
The shortage lands at a bad moment because the sanctuary says it needs to raise the rest of a private foundation match by the end of the month. So far, Foreverland Farm has raised $6,000 toward a match that can add up to $10,000, and Kane said that money would cover feed for the animals for at least the next two months.
Foreverland Farm sits on 15 acres in Brown County and was founded in 2018, then bought its property in Mt. Orab three years ago. Kane said the sanctuary now cares for 110 animals, including chickens, goats, sheep, pigs, a llama, a cow and many horses. It is the kind of place that often absorbs animals that people cannot keep or cannot afford to treat, which is why the drop in donations has become more than a budget problem.
That squeeze shows up in the numbers. Kane said it costs about $1,500 a day to run Foreverland Farm, depending on the day, and the sanctuary has had to keep saying no to rescue requests while its finances remain down. The organization is not short on need; it is short on room to act, and every inquiry it turns away is another animal left waiting for a place that is already full.
One of the sanctuary’s longest-running residents underscores what the money pays for when it does arrive. Kane said Rumor, the turkey who was going to be used for Thanksgiving dinner before Foreverland Farm took him in, has been there since late 2018. For the sanctuary, the question now is whether the remaining match is reached in time to keep feed covered and keep the gates open to the next animal in need.
